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BeyondBlue Hello! Read this if you're not sure how to get started
  • replies: 0

Welcome This section of the Beyond Blue Forums is for talking about our experiences with depression. There are lots of chats about how it makes us feel, what it’s like to live with depression and what has worked to help in these times. Thank you for ... View more

Welcome This section of the Beyond Blue Forums is for talking about our experiences with depression. There are lots of chats about how it makes us feel, what it’s like to live with depression and what has worked to help in these times. Thank you for coming this far, we know it can be really hard to take these steps if depression is in your life - we see you and think this is a great step. To get the most out of this space we have a few tips: Get involved. The Forums work best for you when you get active and post where you can. Now, we know that can be really hard, especially when you are experiencing depression. So, if you can post something supportive to someone else here, that would be an incredible start. Speak from the heart. This community wants to know how YOU feel and what has worked for YOU. We trust that you have something unique to say and we can’t wait to hear it. Check in. Lots of the discussions in this section of the Forums have been going for years and they are some of the richest conversations we have. Keep checking in to get new ideas and offer your support. We know it can be tough to start, but when you are ready we want to hear your thoughts. If you need some time to get to know the community, that's okay! Have a look around and see where you want to get involved. Thank you for being here! Beyond Blue

Jeriava How do I talk to my doctor?
  • replies: 9

I’ve been struggling with my life for the past 7-8 years but I finally made an appointment with a doctor. I feel really scared though because I don’t ever go to the doctor for anything, and I havent seen this doctor for so many years that I’m really ... View more

I’ve been struggling with my life for the past 7-8 years but I finally made an appointment with a doctor. I feel really scared though because I don’t ever go to the doctor for anything, and I havent seen this doctor for so many years that I’m really scared that they’ll judge me or won’t believe anything I say. I’m really anti social so I feel like I won’t be able to say what I wanna say or I’ll say the wrong thing causing them to just dismiss me and move me along without helping. I’m just tired of feeling alone, depressed and just worthless but I’m really scared to talk to them.

AGrace SELF HELP TIPS FOR MANAGING DEPRESSION
  • replies: 132

Hi Everyone, Here are some ideas you might like to try for managing symptoms of depression. Of course everyone's different, so let us know what works for you, and please feel free to add to the list... Mindfulness – through breathing or engaging the ... View more

Hi Everyone, Here are some ideas you might like to try for managing symptoms of depression. Of course everyone's different, so let us know what works for you, and please feel free to add to the list... Mindfulness – through breathing or engaging the 5 senses Distress Tolerance – Accepting Emotions and Self Soothing Distraction – Put the thoughts/feelings aside and come back to them when you are ready to deal with them Positive Affirmations – Have some affirmations written down repeat them to yourself daily Sleep/Exercise/Diet – All 3 aspects of our lifestyle can impact the way we think/feel Increasing Pleasurable Activities – Engage in at least one pleasurable activity per day

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Leigh1987 Should Depression be renamed?
  • replies: 12

Hi all, I just wanted to share a few thoughts I have about depression being a misnomer. One frustration of depression is the internal experience differing from what it looks like on the outside. Friends have said to me for instance that I am refusing... View more

Hi all, I just wanted to share a few thoughts I have about depression being a misnomer. One frustration of depression is the internal experience differing from what it looks like on the outside. Friends have said to me for instance that I am refusing to enjoy life or have fun. However from my perspective I am just incapable of enjoyment while I am going through a depressive period. I think this stems from the incorrect view that depression is the same as being sad or low. After all when they felt low they engaged in positive activities and felt better. Thus they don't understand the experience of the condition as opposed to simply being depressed. As our understanding moves away from viewing depression as a feebleness of the mind and towards seeing it as a condition that impacts on both mind and body I really do think we should consider reterming it altogether. This would help move away from misconceptions and towards a more nuanced appreciation of the illness. It would help alleviate at least one frustration experienced by sufferers. Thoughts? Feelings?

Gonetroppo Lock down
  • replies: 3

Hi everybody, I came on this site some months age, stuck around for a while then wandered off. I've come back over the last couple of days. Life has been a little tough. I moved from Adelaide to Melbourne last November and have spent 6 of the 10 mont... View more

Hi everybody, I came on this site some months age, stuck around for a while then wandered off. I've come back over the last couple of days. Life has been a little tough. I moved from Adelaide to Melbourne last November and have spent 6 of the 10 months I've been here in some form of lock down. The isolation has been difficult to deal with (I live alone). I usually spend a lot of time on my own and generally prefer to be by myself. I don't really form strong social networks. I usually get my social contact through work but obviously I don't have that right now. It has been difficult to link up with health professionals, so only been only the meds to get through this. I have been able to hook up with some doctors which has made life a lot easier. I still struggle and the hardest things to deal with are sleep and work. My sleep is all over the place at the moment. In fact, I can't remember the last time I fell asleep before 3 am. The other thing is work. I don't function well in an unstructured environment and home lacks the structure I need to stay productive. Before I moved here, I lived in two bedroom apartments and I always used one room as an office. I'm in a single bedroom here so I don't have a dedicated space for work. I have fallen behind on a lot on work tasks - something that is causing some stress. I've been trying a lot of things to fix this but haven't yet come up with something that works. Anyway, that's my life right now. I guess it could be worse.

Padden There’s no point
  • replies: 3

There’s no point. We live and then we die. my husband is dead. He was my everything and now there’s no point in continuing. I wish I could die. I have spent my whole life trying so hard to be a good person, someone lovable but now there’s no one. My ... View more

There’s no point. We live and then we die. my husband is dead. He was my everything and now there’s no point in continuing. I wish I could die. I have spent my whole life trying so hard to be a good person, someone lovable but now there’s no one. My family have not supported me at all since my husband died. I have no one to talk to or share anything with. People might say, let me know if there’s anything I can do but what can they do. They can’t bring him back, they can’t make it hurt less. There’s nothing so I say nothing and hurt on my own. I can’t do this. This isn’t a life and I don’t see any hope that it will get better. Every day I wish I could die. what is the point in trying to feel better. Terrible things will happen and there is so much pain still to come in my life.

Lagela How to get husband to understand it’s a condition.
  • replies: 18

This has been a long journey and still undiagnosed. I’m just coming out of number 5 MDE, all suicidal but no attempts. I have realised that my husband has been one of the hurdles in me getting the support that I need. I have been scared for a long ti... View more

This has been a long journey and still undiagnosed. I’m just coming out of number 5 MDE, all suicidal but no attempts. I have realised that my husband has been one of the hurdles in me getting the support that I need. I have been scared for a long time to get help and felt like I am to blame and have to save the relationship before myself. it actually feels refreshing to have this realisation but I do need help with it. Because I do value my marriage - it’s great when things are great. sorry for the ramble - not the clearest mind today.

marnieelizabeth i need help
  • replies: 3

I’m so depressed i’ve barely left my bed in days. i got a letter from my phycologist who suggest going from full time 5 days a week to 3 days a week to see if i managed better. i can count on one hand the amount of days i’ve gone to work in the past ... View more

I’m so depressed i’ve barely left my bed in days. i got a letter from my phycologist who suggest going from full time 5 days a week to 3 days a week to see if i managed better. i can count on one hand the amount of days i’ve gone to work in the past 2 months, i’m scared i’m going to lose my job but my mental health is crippling and the longer i put off going back the harder it is to. i feel so lonely and weak. it’s just getting worse but i can’t bring myself to reach out to the ones close to me, i physically just can’t do it and i’m so scared that my depression has gotten this deep

Niks85 The news of man with bipolar being attacked by police has affected me
  • replies: 10

Yesterday I turned on the news because I heard that a man struggling with bipolar was attacked by police while being arrested and is now in a coma. It's seriously affected me because I have bipolar and I know what it's like to seek help at hospital a... View more

Yesterday I turned on the news because I heard that a man struggling with bipolar was attacked by police while being arrested and is now in a coma. It's seriously affected me because I have bipolar and I know what it's like to seek help at hospital and wait longer than 24hours for a bed like this man did. I feel so awful for him it's left me feeling down

Original_nickname Depression.
  • replies: 9

I don't know how to start one of these so i will just get into it. I enjoy barely anything anymore and I am constantly isolating myself. I can eat a lot like a lot for one week and then go without food for three days with little water. It's hard to s... View more

I don't know how to start one of these so i will just get into it. I enjoy barely anything anymore and I am constantly isolating myself. I can eat a lot like a lot for one week and then go without food for three days with little water. It's hard to sleep taking around 2 hours to fall asleep. I self harm sometimes and have daily thoughts on suicide. I get angry very easily My Stepfather used to pick me up by the ear and chuck me into my room, he even used to hit my head and tell me to toughen up a lot. I don't usually talk about this anymore because the last time I did (which was to my parents) they said "everyone is feeling the same" and walked away. I also believe i have ADD, I get distracted easily, find it really hard to do school work and I am always loosing things only 5 minutes after putting them away somewhere. I also don't know what to say at the end so i will just say, bye and thank you for your time.

cv02 Depressed about my pretender life
  • replies: 12

I'm 36, wife and two young kids. I have an undergraduate degree, a masters in accounting and am a CPA working for a bankp1. It sounds great on paper but everyday I feel like a pretender to the degree that I have been diagnosed with depression. I work... View more

I'm 36, wife and two young kids. I have an undergraduate degree, a masters in accounting and am a CPA working for a bankp1. It sounds great on paper but everyday I feel like a pretender to the degree that I have been diagnosed with depression. I work as a management accountant which does not require any skills whatsoever and now I feel like I know nothing. Like I cant remember anything I've ever learnt and it has gotten to the degree that I'm scared of making mistakes. Even small mistakes where "it's ok to fail because it's just another step of learning". I feel lke I'm worthless. I look at my kids and cry because I feel like they have a worthless father who will get made redundant and will end up as a loser. This unreasonable thought is affecting my life and my work even though nothing has happened yet!! All I know is that I dont want to do it anymore but I dont know what else to do. I have read things like "do what you are passionate about" but I'm not passionate about anything other than my wife and kids. But this won't pay my mortgage or put food on the table. Not sure what to do..

Liiina Bipolar and medication
  • replies: 4

Hi there I’ve recently got the diagnosis of bipolar affective disorder I’m on meds at the moment but I feel like it slows me down.they are helping me so much to function and live a meaningful life but for some reason I struggle to keep taking it, eve... View more

Hi there I’ve recently got the diagnosis of bipolar affective disorder I’m on meds at the moment but I feel like it slows me down.they are helping me so much to function and live a meaningful life but for some reason I struggle to keep taking it, every time it works for a little while I go off them and have the same cycle over and over again is anyone here struggling to take meds for bipolar? How do you guys manage it ? I feel a lot smarter, more confident and think faster without meds it’s hard to give it up for the mood stability

PrincessMilktea Am I being unhealthy?
  • replies: 28

So despite the fact that I'm posting this in the depression forum I'd consider myself a pretty happy person overall, I just didn't know where to post this and depression seemed like the best fit, so my apologies in advance. Basically, everything in m... View more

So despite the fact that I'm posting this in the depression forum I'd consider myself a pretty happy person overall, I just didn't know where to post this and depression seemed like the best fit, so my apologies in advance. Basically, everything in my life is going great except for the fact that I seem to have lost the ability to emotionally connect with others. I've noticed that I fake my emotions often and pretend to be more interested/invested than I actually am in people because I either don't want to hurt their feelings, want to gain something from them, or I just feel a strong compulsion to behave normally to preserve my 'image'. I'm averse to standing out in any way (good or bad) and go to great lengths to keep a low profile whether at work or uni or just my social circles. I feel anxiety from being noticeably different from others and thus will not let people know how apathetic I truly am on the inside. The irony is that I want to emotionally connect with others but I can't seem to genuinely feel anything for them, even though they're mostly amazing people and had I met them when I was younger I would have definitely felt close to them. I think this apathy stems from just my terrible past friendships, relationships and familial trauma. Over the years I've had to dissolve many close relations with people I've cared deeply for and now I'm starting to think I'm emotionally burnt out as a result. This is going to sound sociopathic but I view like 90% of the people in my life as disposable. I know I feel next to nothing for most of them and that the only reason I'm not a full-blown sociopath is because I have enough empathy and integrity to realise they deserve to be treated better and I would feel terribly guilty for hurting them, so I treat them with compassion, commitment, support and 'perform' my duties in whatever capacity they need me to be. I don't know if I should continue down this current trajectory or make an attempt to 'feel' again. It's not that much of an issue but nonethless it alarms me, and I wonder if it warrants going back to therapy. I apologise if my problems seem trivial in comparison to a lot of people here struggling with depression, I hope I haven't offended anyone and that my internal verbiage isn't too difficult to follow. I'd appreciate any insight/advice.

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